Launch News Soyuz TMA-03M on December 21 2011

[SiberianTiger]

I have a question. Why is docking at 18:22:41 Московское декретное on the scheme? Shouldn't it be 19:22:41, or are they using standard time again instead of daylight saving time now?

MCC-M always uses UTC+3 (the "decreted Moscow time") regardless of daylight saving time changes and local times. I have to add one hour to obtain actual Moscow time (the "shop" time).

 

[SiberianTiger]

NASA TV is on air
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

 

[SiberianTiger]

After 12 second long braking burn, alignment turn began.

 

[orb]

ESA too stared live coverage:
http://multimedia.esa.int/Live

 

[SiberianTiger]

Alignment is done, final Approaching has begun.

 

[SiberianTiger]

20 m to go...

 

[orb]

Contact occurred at 15:19:13 UTC followed by capture. :thumbup:

 

[SiberianTiger]

Docking is confirmed!

 

[orb]

Orbinaut Pete's article:

NASASpaceflight: Soyuz TMA-03M docks to ISS, returns station to six crewmembers for future ops​

SPACE.com: 3 Astronauts Arrive at Space Station for the Holidays

Florida Today - The Flame Trench: New Crew Makes Holiday Arrival At Space Station

ESA: ESA astronaut André Kuipers arrives at the Space Station

RIA Novosti: New crew arrives at international space station

CBS News Space: Russian Soyuz docks with space station, boosts crew back to six

Aviation Week: Soyuz Docking Returns International Space Station to Six Crew Operations

Universe Today: New Crew Arrives Safely at International Space Station

 

[Scruce]

Expedition 30 Docking (ReelNASA):

The Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Don Pettit, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko and European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers docks to the International Space Station's Rassvet module on Dec. 23 at 10:19 a.m. EST.

______________________________________


New Crew Trio Arrives at ISS (NASAtelevision):

After launching in their Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft to the International Space Station, Expedition 30 Soyuz Commander Oleg Kononenko, NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit and European Space Agency Flight Engineer Andre Kuipers arrived at the complex on December 23, docking their craft to the Rassvet module on the Russian segment of the complex.

A few hours after docking to the station, Kononenko, Pettit and Kuipers were greeted by three other crew members on the outpost, station Commander Dan Burbank of NASA and Russian Flight Engineers Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin, who have been aboard the orbital laboratory for just over a month.

 

[diogom]

RSC Energia: Soyuz TMA-03M has delivered a crew complement to ISS. A crew of six is going to see the New Year in onboard the space station!

 

[diogom]

Soyuz TMA-03M on approach to the Rassvet module:

From - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/multimedia/gallery/iss030e015599.html

 

[IronRain]

Launch campaign in 3D

 

[SiberianTiger]

Is the only way to see this as 3d to squint my eyes? There are just few things I hate more. Maybe there's a kind of viewing device for that?

 

[orb]

Is the only way to see this as 3d to squint my eyes? There are just few things I hate more. Maybe there's a kind of viewing device for that?

No. You can go to the YouTube page and select the preferred method for the 3D projection.

... Or watch it below:

3D options enabled player

​

 

[IronRain]

[FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF][SIZE=+2]Russia orders Soyuz delays in wake of test mishap

[/SIZE][/FONT]Russian space managers have ordered delays for upcoming manned Soyuz flights to the International Space Station in the wake of a test mishap that over pressurized and damaged the descent module of a Soyuz scheduled for launch March 30 to ferry three fresh crew members to the International Space Station, a senior NASA managers said Thursday.

Mike Suffredini, manager of the space station program at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, said his Russian counterparts informed the station team they had decided to scrap the damaged descent module and to accelerate processing of the next downstream Soyuz to take its place. As a result, three of the station's current six crew members -- commander Daniel Burbank, Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin -- will extend their stay in orbit by a month and a half and return to Earth April 30 and the crew that had planned to launch on March 30 -- Gennady Padalka, Sergei Revin and Joseph Acaba -- will be delayed to May 15.

"During pressure testing of the descent module and the pressurized section of the propulsion module, the vehicle was over pressurized and as a result, it caused a leak in the area where the hydrogen peroxide system is housed for the thrusters that are used during descent and landing," Suffredini told reporters.
"As a result of that, our Russian colleagues have chosen to not fly this particular vehicle and they've set it aside. A commission has been formed to try to figure out what the cause of the over pressure event was and how to make sure it doesn't happen in the future."

(Placed in this topic because it also effects this crew and there is no other topic available for it yet)

 

[orb]

(Placed in this topic because it also effects this crew and there is no other topic available for it yet)

Yeah, that's why I placed it in the ISS Updates thread earlier.

 

[orb]

Undocking and landing is scheduled for tomorrow. Here's calendar event for it. Here you can request a reminder for it. Below is undocking and landing timeline.


Undocking and landing timeline:

{colsp=2}

Time​

|{colsp=4}

MET​

| Event

UTC​

|

EDT​

|

DD​

|

HH​

|

MM​

|

SS​

|

04:45:00 |12:45:00 a.m. |192 |15 |28 |45 |Undocking command

04:48:00 |12:48:00 a.m. |192 |15 |31 |45 |Physical separation/hooks open

04:48:30 |12:48:30 a.m. |192 |15 |32 |15 |Crew activation of digital autopilot (3rd flight test)

04:50:00 |12:50:00 a.m. |192 |15 |33 |45 |Manual Soyuz separation burn No. 1

04:51:10 |12:51:10 a.m. |192 |15 |34 |55 |Stationkeeping arrival (50 m)

04:53:00 |12:53:00 a.m. |192 |15 |36 |45 |Digital autopilot test start

04:58:00 |12:58:00 a.m. |192 |15 |41 |45 |Manual Soyuz separation burn No. 2

07:19:15 |03:19:15 a.m. |192 |18 |03 |00 |Soyuz deorbit burn start (dV: 115.2 m/s)

07:23:31 |03:23:31 a.m. |192 |18 |07 |16 |Deorbit burn complete

07:47:40 |03:47:40 a.m. |192 |18 |31 |25 |Separation of modules (altitude: 139.9 km)

07:51:01 |03:51:01 a.m. |192 |18 |34 |46 |Atmospheric Entry (altitude: 97.2 km)

07:52:37 |03:52:37 a.m. |192 |18 |36 |22 |Entry guidance start (altitude: 80.8 km)

07:57:31 |03:57:31 a.m. |192 |18 |41 |16 |Maximum G-load (altitude: 39.4 km)

07:59:48 |03:59:48 a.m. |192 |18 |43 |33 |Command to open parachute (altitude: 10.7 km)

08:14:38 |04:14:38 a.m. |192 |18 |58 |23 |Landing (47°18' N, 69°34' E)

Florida Today:

• Soyuz will carry 3 home from ISS
  
  
• Soyuz due home Sunday with American astronaut

SPACE.com: Space Station Crew to Return to Earth Sunday

CBS News Space: Outgoing station astronauts prep Soyuz for return to Earth

RIA Novosti: Three Space Station Crew Members Head Back to Earth

 

[orb]

TMA-03M hatch closure

Separation in about a minute now.

Hatch closure video:

 

[orb]

TMA-03M has undocked.